Unguarded
by SpinalCoil
Summary: High school heiress Lucy Heartfilia asks violent delinquent and school outcast Natsu Dragneel to teach her self-defense. Lots of feisty teasing, flirtation, unnecessary (man)handling and heaps of heart-racing, nerve-snapping sexual tension ensue. Warning: protective gear may be required - nosebleeds/occasional bouts of heart failure expected. NaLu.


Special thanks to** Lolibeagle, **my beta reader for this story. I really appreciate you giving me feedback on this story. And OMG I had no idea how different British and American English were until now! I still love Brit Eng but it was really interesting to learn about the American version and I am looking forward to learning more.

**Disclaimers:** Fairy Tail and the characters are owned by **Hiro Mashima**. The only thing I own is this story based on Mashima's work.

**The self-defense principles, skills and techniques that I describe in this story are used for entertainment purposes only. Please ****do not**** try any of this. If you are interested in self-defense training, please seek out ****formal classes****. I will be drawing on Krav Maga for this story. I won't use it exactly, but it's the style I know so that's what I'll draw from.**

* * *

**Birth (Part 1)**

"Lucy! Hey Lucy! Are you even listening to us?" Levy McGarden asked, shaking her best friend slightly.

The beautiful blond next to Levy stirred restlessly in her seat and smiled at her friends.

The five girls at the picnic table had been friends since anyone at Fairy Academy could remember, but if you were to ask them, they'd tell you they didn't understand why the girls got along so well in the first place. They were completely different. Here's a summary of what a recent school newspaper article had to say about Fairy Academy's five 'girls'.

Blunette Levy was the 'smart girl'. Always topping her class and representing the school in whatever bee, fair, -athalon, or Olympiad the education department could think of to quiz kids with next! Honestly! No one knew why they even bothered; it was the same kids who took part in all of them anyway. Well, the good part was that, with Levy around, no one else had to bother about getting involved, or **participating**, as the overly enthusiastic literature teacher-in-training, Max, liked to emphasize.

Erza was the 'strict girl'; the class president who held rules, order and proper conduct above all else. How this girl managed to snag a boyfriend was the subject of widespread speculation. But the prevailing opinion was that the school's resident 'thinker', Jellal Fernandez, was so caught up in trying to win his one man pro brooding tournament that he didn't actually know he was in a 'functioning' relationship with the striking, but very-likely-to-strike-you-unconscious, redhead.

So Erza takes this one? Well, the jury's still out on that one.

Brunette Cana was the 'party girl'. How Erza and Cana managed to co-exist in the same longitude, much less the same zip code, boggled even academic minds. No, seriously. Findings from the most recent study were inconclusive, so I guess you can say the jury's still out on that one too. Cana was usually one of two things: at a party, or recovering from a party. Sometimes she would wake up from a hangover to talk about parties, but most times she would just show up at them. Well, it wasn't like she had to be carried out, so, have at it girl!

Then there was Juvia. Ah Juvia! Now Juvia's a special case; a basket case. But for the sake of consistency and pseudo-literary finesse, let's call her the 'fan girl'. Juvia was the living marriage of apparently inconceivable extremes: timid and brazen. The same shy girl who had difficulty maintaining even a simple conversation with her friends, openly stalked and verbally - and sometimes not so verbally - assaulted one particularly unfortunate member of the student body (and, just to say, what a body!): Gray Fullbuster.

Lastly, there was Lucy Heartfilia, a.k.a. the 'rich girl'. Daughter of one of the richest men in Fiore, Lucy was an heiress and that meant she was untouchable. Not because her father carried his Smith and Wesson 9mm wherever he went, of course not, never, but because the fine glass princess of Fairy Academy was proud, stuck up and high-maintenance.

Sure, she was hot, they all were, but no teenage boy alive would come near the Fine Five, unless of course he didn't know about it.

Good job there Erza! The win apparently goes to you for sheer ingenious.

Now, it probably doesn't need to be said, but the students' opinions of the five weren't exactly unbiased. Teenage minds are nothing if not active and imaginative, sometimes downright venomous. But their opinions do help us to understand a bit about how others saw the girls.

Today, the group was sitting on the picnic benches in the school courtyard enjoying the wonderful feel of the early summer sun on their dry, cracked, winter-worn skin. It had been a particularly brutal winter and everyone was glad to see it gone and to welcome the happy, outdoorsy days of summer!

"Yeah, of course I'm listening" Lucy answered Levy in an overly enthusiastic voice, twirling her fork anxiously between her slim, nimble fingers. "We were talking about the concert next month and I said I'm in."

Erza opened her mouth to respond but before a sound could escape, Cana banged her hand loud on the wooden table, getting the attention of even the people in the surrounding tables – not that Cana noticed or minded much.

"That was 10 minutes ago!" she said. "What's going on Lucy? You've been distracted all week. I know something's going on. Come on, spill."

The others looked at Lucy eagerly, waiting for an answer. Well, Cana was slightly more demanding than eager, really.

"Nothing's up, I swear" the blond defended, "I just promised dad I would help him out with something."

The others winced at that.

"Exactly!" Lucy continued. "Since when have you known dad to talk to me, much less ask me for help? Hell, when was the last time I even saw dad even though we live in the same house? The whole thing's just been a little weird, that's all."

Her friends nodded as Lucy explained her troubles. None of them asked anymore about it. Every now and then Lucy was required to accompany her father on business galas, banquets and other events that concerned The Heartfilia Konzern. It was all formality and etiquette and her friends knew how hard it was for Lucy who had always been neglected but who, as she grew older, had been feeling more and more like one of her father's tools than his daughter.

"Don't worry Lucy," Erza said supportively. "You've been trained for this. Just follow the proper protocol and say whatever your coach tells you and everything will be fine. You just have to get through it."

"Yeah" Lucy responded distractedly. As much as she enjoyed jumping predictably through the decorated hoops of high society like some trained animal, this time, nothing Lyra had ever taught her could help her.

Her eyes wandered once again to the grassy mound across the picnic tables. Sitting alone under a tree, dressed in brown camouflage trousers and a military green T-shirt, was Natsu Dragneel. If the girls were avoided at school because they were 'exceptional', Natsu was avoided because he was dangerous.

Rumor had it that his dad was in some highly classified, doesn't even exist on the books, top secret division of the military.

Everyone knew that Natsu lived alone. Some of the kids in school had been with him since kindergarten, but none of them remembered his dad. He was apparently deployed on some international mission years ago and no one had seen him since. Most people suspected that he was still alive since someone was obviously providing for the boy and keeping him in school, but, by latest count, most reckoned that Natsu's old man had been gone for more than ten years.

In his dad's absence Natsu 'loose cannon' Dragneel immersed himself in all things military. It was said that he knew at least 4 different kinds of martial arts. He came to school when he wanted and attended class even less. On days when he did come to school tension was always high, especially when he walked down the halls. Nobody wanted to piss him off or even look at him the wrong way. He had a short fuse - and a killer left hook. Really. That's not hyperbole. It could kill you. Even the teachers avoided him. Word on the grapevine was that he growled so threateningly at one teacher, the man had to take a week off to recover.

Almost everything about Natsu survived in whispers and suspicion. No one knew anything about what he did when he wasn't in school. And most didn't want to know.

Lucy took a deep breath.

_'Short fuse', 'loose cannon', 'freak', 'loner', whatever they call you, you're probably my only hope now_, Lucy thought as she looked at the stray boy eating his lunch and listening to music, the whole grassy mound and the space around it given over to him alone.

§§§

Lucy stood awkwardly over Natsu who was reclining against the tree, his eyes closed, listening to music. Everyone had gone inside for the afternoon classes. She'd remained in the courtyard to talk to the one boy who definitely wouldn't be going to class. His headphones were huge but she could still hear the guitars grating through them.

She called his name but he didn't respond.

_Of course he wouldn't hear you_! she chided herself.

She exhaled a frustrated puff as she stooped next to him, preparing herself for what she knew she had to do next.

_He better not have any touch issues_! she thought silently. _I may not always like my head, but I prefer it where it is_.

Balancing precariously on the balls of her feet Lucy leaned forward to touch Natsu's shoulder.

Before her hand could reach him however, she stopped.

Lucy had always largely ignored Natsu. Not because she thought he was scary, but because she didn't really have any reason to pay attention to him. Sure, sometimes he attracted attention, but Lucy wouldn't give the loudmouth the satisfaction of hers.

So Lucy had seen Natsu around school before and knew what he looked like.

But the Natsu she was looking at now wasn't anything like the Natsu she'd seen around school.

And it was interesting.

His tan skin and pink hair were the same as they always were. But his features had changed considerably. Relaxed and content like this the boy looked like a different person. Softer, kinder, and, even though Lucy's conscious mind didn't say it, her unconscious mind screamed it – handsome!

Unable to control herself Lucy let her eyes slowly drift down the boy's full, broad shoulders and arms, and down his toned chest and rugged stomach.

_Whoa! He's seriously fit!_ Lucy's right brain exclaimed, momentarily entering Juvia-mode.

_Of course he's fit_, her left brain challenged, _he's a martial arts expert! This is why you're here. Focus girl!_

But Lucy's right brain was having none of that.

This was nice.

Like really nice.

Like creamy ice-cream on a hot day nice; everything just bursting with flavor!

Like you just have to have it; you have to wrap your lips around it and feel its sweet, refreshing coolness surging through you, exciting you down to the tips of your limbs in one tasty bite.

There are few fundamental truths in this world. But if there is one that is relevant for us today, it is that there's nothing in this world that can stop the force of a teenage girl in desperate need of some ice-cream.

In that moment, unfortunately for Lucy, she entered full-on Juvia mode. And one must never go full-on Juvia!

As if in a slow, hazy dream Lucy's body took over; her rational, conscious mind now but a mere ant to be stomped on by her instincts. All she could see were the deep ridges lining Natsu's stomach where his T-shirt fell and raised oh-so-perfectly, and the rock hard chest pushing against the loose fabric, that, from her angle, fit just right.

She allowed her eyes to glide further up, to his face, to take in that peaceful, relaxed expression once more. It was a good thing that the little ant that was her consciousness was still alive, only just barely, but enough to remind her to stifle her gasp. The boy looked even more beautiful now than before.

He was slightly flushed and his features held a tint of fiery life, even through his peace.

_Oh my celestial beings in the heavens, he's gorgeous!_

Lucy unknowingly lifted her hand again and reached out to the boy.

If you asked her later she would say that she had to touch him, to see if he was real, or if everything was just a dream. But that's not entirely true. Lucy's body was moving on its own. Doing what it wanted. Lucy had no control over what its intentions were. She was just the puppet of her instincts.

When her fingers were just centimeters from his face, one of the boy's eyes popped open and regarded her with an amused expression.

Lucy huffed mentally. The touch she now wanted so badly was interrupted again.

"And just what exactly do you think you're doing, princess?" the boy asked, aiming for annoyed but sounding more interested than he'd wanted to let on.

In an instant the dream popped and Lucy had to face the embarrassing, ugly reality of what her primal urges had done.

_Dang it!_

She quickly jerked her hand away and turned from the boy so he couldn't see her burning face.

With all the pride she could muster, Lucy raised her head, still unable to face him and answered. "I was trying to get your attention. I called out to you but you didn't answer. So..." Lucy allowed her voice to trail off since the rest seemed obvious.

The boy's second eye opened at this.

"When someone ignores you, that's your cue to leave" he said, the irritation he wanted finally entering his voice.

"So wait, you heard me?"

"Of course I heard you. I could hear you coming up all the way from over there," he said nodding towards the middle of the knoll.

"So why didn't you just answer me when I called you?" Lucy asked, turning to him finally, skillfully keeping the conversation away from her shady doings with his evidently not sleeping body.

The boy raised an eyebrow.

"You're not very smart, are you?" he pitched, emphasizing his words again, "**When someone ignores you, that's your cue to leave."**

"Why would you ignore me when you don't even know why I'm here?" she threw back, surprised by his rudeness.

He raised an eyebrow at her. Surely, she knew who he was. Everyone knew. He'd made it clear every day that he came to school that he preferred to be alone, that he didn't want the shallow, self-righteous company of others.

But not only did she have the impudence to approach him and disturb him but she also thought that she could use that tone with him. Natsu hated people like her the most; people who felt that the world belonged to them and they could move the pieces around according to their whim.

Still, his usual rancor at being disturbed didn't seem to rise today. Maybe it was because she'd surprised him with her sheer nerve. No one ever approached him willingly.

Natsu looked down at the girl's body, her loose arms, her legs tucked innocently under her body. Next, he moved his eyes over her face. Natsu couldn't exactly place her expression. It was curious, almost questioning. He could make out some eagerness too. But there was something else there, something Natsu couldn't place. What it was didn't really matter. What mattered was that her expressions were all openly displayed.

_She's completely defenseless_, he noted immediately. _This chick's not scared of me at all!_ The realization was both interesting and troubling. He immediately went on the attack.

"You've got some nerve, princess. I think I've made it perfectly clear that l like to be alone. Let me assure you, I'm not like the other people around here. I don't give a damn who your daddy is, you can't command me around like I'm one of your servants."

Instead of recoiling from the abuse the girl looked at him expectantly.

"So you know who I am?" she asked.

Natsu was flummoxed by the girl's ease and what she chose to focus on.

_What the hell! This girl would probably walk right into a Lion's open mouth carrying raw, meaty treats. Doesn't she have any sense of danger?_

Somewhere deep inside him, in a dark pool of his subconscious, a part of Natsu that was fast asleep stirred, and groggily opened a weary but curious eye.

An electric spark went through the living boy at the awakening, his nerves signaling its birth to the unprepared boy. Natsu was wildly intrigued by the sharp surge he felt charging through his body, but he elected to ignore it, bury it for now, while he concentrated on what was important.

First rule of self-defense: act, don't react.

"Of course I know who you are. Not like I care any. Everyone just knows," he threw at her.

"Why are you being like that? I just came here to talk to you" Lucy countered, heat now rising at being spoken to so rudely when she was being nothing but nice and...em...somewhat respectful.

Now, Natsu did a mental double-take. He'd been trained to hide his emotions but this girl was pushing him.

_She came here to talk? Of her own free will?_ Natsu eyed her with obvious distrust, but now he couldn't lie, he really wanted to know why she was there. What could give the girl that much courage that she'd come up to him on her own, defenseless and unafraid?

_This is new_, Natsu reasoned with himself, _and it's important to know all the enemy's faces and tricks. This would be a good lesson_.

"Okay fine. Let's have it. What do you want, princess?" he asked coldly, adding a loud, frustrated grunt at the end to further camouflage his building intrigue.

Still, there was no visible flinch or reaction from the girl.

_This girl's crafty_, he thought as she stood up from her crouched position, folded her arms and regarded him seriously.

Natsu maintained his relaxed, casual position on the tree, as he raised his eyes to meet her face. It wasn't like this frail girl could hurt him.

"I wanted to ask you to teach me some self-defense," she blurted out confidently. She'd practiced the words so many times; she couldn't get them wrong now that she was finally there.

Now Natsu's expression turned stern.

Natsu took his martial arts very seriously. For him it was about mental and physical balance, discipline, concentration and hard training. It had required years of grueling work, frustration and determination for him to hone his skills and become who he was. And he was still learning and growing every day. He wasn't about to let some superficial, pampered kitty looking for a temporary diversion from her boring life disrespect the thing he prized most; the only thing, these days.

"No" he said shortly and closed his eyes, shutting her out once more.

Lucy was dumfounded. She couldn't believe he'd rejected her so easily. He didn't even ask her anything.

She looked down at him and saw the familiar expression, the one everyone saw. The only face everyone, including her until today, had ever seen. But now Lucy wasn't moved by it. She'd seen what lay on the other side of that face and trusted it. She didn't think she could ever be afraid of it, so she pushed on.

She plopped down next to him again and leaned over so she was facing him directly.

"You didn't even ask anything. You just said 'no'. That's unfair. Please" she said in a direct, straightforward tone. "I'm a good student. I'll listen and I won't second guess you. I'll trust what you say. I'll wax on/wax off, climb stairs, balance mantis-style, carry rocks, plough the land, rake the sand, break the bricks, drink the ale, whatever! I'll do whatever you ask me to do, Natsu, however ludicrous it sounds. I know you can help me. Everyone says you're the best."

Now, Natsu was glad that his eyes were closed so she couldn't see him mentally cracking up. _I don't think there's a movie cliché that she missed_, he said to himself.

Even though he thought she was funny, in the back of his mind, Natsu was disappointed. Somewhere, he'd wanted her to be serious. This was exactly why he wouldn't help her. The minute things got hard she'd drop it. It wasn't worth his time.

"Look princess-" Natsu started.

"It's **Lucy**, not 'princess'. I was polite and respectful enough to call you by your name. Can't you show me the same courtesy?" Lucy demanded.

Natsu pushed the memory from his mind. He didn't want to think about the strange way he'd felt when she'd said his name. It was weirdly disarming.

"I never asked you to use my name. What is it you guys say? 'Loose cannon'? That works fine."

"I never called you 'loose cannon' and I never would. You may be surprised, **hothead**, but I've never had cause to think of you until this week" Lucy challenged, just about tired of this routine. "Now, will you help me or not? I'm serious. I'll be...obedient."

Natsu looked up at her. She did seem serious.

"No. Wait, sorry. No, **princess**. There are tons of schools around, go ask them. I'm sure they'll be happy for some Heartfilia money," Natsu retorted.

This time, Lucy reacted. Natsu watched as the sharp, spunky, confidence left her eyes and she allowed her gaze to fall.

"I-I can't go to one of those places" she responded lightly fingering the grass beneath her. "I- I can't let my dad find out about this. He'd...oppose it."

This time Natsu was stirred by the desperation creeping into her voice and the dark, frail look that hung over her. He'd finally found her Achilles' heel, but he didn't like it one bit. He liked the fierceness. It was refreshing. He was actually tempted to taunt her a bit so he could see it some more. But like this, he couldn't.

"Please Natsu," Lucy begged, for real this time. She looked up at him, her big, brown eyes shining with hope.

Natsu had spent years strengthening his body and preparing for battles of all kinds, mental and physical, but her tender, trembling, yearning voice shredded through all his training in an instant. He sat there, under that formidable tree, shell-shocked and naked. It had been a long time since he'd felt so defenseless.

In her crouched shadow, Natsu was just a boy.

He quickly grabbed his things and stood up. He needed to regroup and strategize for this new kind of opponent.

"Once and for all, no" he said with finality before walking off. Old man Makarov's boring science class was definitely better than staying here. Maybe he'd go to literature class afterwards as well. It'd been a while since he'd last growled at Max. The young teacher needed a refresher course. Natsu smiled thinking about it.

_Maybe this time we can check to see if the rumors about the broom are true_, he thought, grinning wickedly.

He refused to look back at Lucy sitting alone and dejected on the low mound as he walked off.

* * *

**A/N**: Yay! New SpinalCoil fluff! Now let me just say, this will be short. I mean four quick chapters short. So don't miss it.

Now, some possibly not-so-happy news for those of you following Fairy Tail Country Club. This story is so short I want to get it done quickly, so you might have to wait just _a little_ longer for the next Country Club update. But then, you've got this yummy little story in the meantime. So...*puss-in-boots eyes*...we make the peace?

Please leave a review and let me know what you thought about this. I'd really, really appreciate it and it'd help me out a lot.

Okay! Thanks for giving this story a chance guys! Bye!


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